Latino Coalition Pushing for Education Equality in Texas

Members of the newly-formed Latino Coalition for Educational Equality descended on the state’s Capitol Tuesday to push for education reforms, including funding for low-income districts and more involvement by Latino experts in the legislative process.

Wealthy school districts are largely majority Anglo, while property-poor districts, including San Antonio’s Edgewood Independent School District, are majority Latino, said David Hinojosa, regional counsel for the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund, or MALDEF, in San Antonio.

“This is not some kind of mistake that’s happened overnight, it’s a system that has evolved over many years and was created by legislators themselves,” Hinojosa said during a press conference Tuesday morning. “The system is not only fractured, but it is broken.”

The coalition planned to spend the day testifying at both the House and Senate Education Committee hearings, and asking legislators for several changes that they hope will better prepare Latino students for higher education.